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Girl’s Peanut Allergy Creates School Controversy

It's not uncommon for at least one of your kid's classmates to have a peanut allergy these days—maybe PB&J sandwiches are banned at your school, too. But a school in Edgewater, FL is taking further steps to protect a first-grader with a life-threatening peanut allergy: All first-graders must wash their hands and rinse out their mouths to prevent any peanut traces from reaching the allergic girl.Plus: 15 Nut-Free Lunch Ideas

It's not uncommon for at least one of your kid's classmates to have a peanut allergy these days—maybe PB&J sandwiches are banned at your school, too. But a school in Edgewater, FL is taking further steps to protect a first-grader with a life-threatening peanut allergy: All first-graders must wash their hands and rinse out their mouths to prevent any peanut traces from reaching the allergic girl. Plus: 15 Nut-Free Lunch Ideas WKMG news covered the story, which has the community divided. On one hand, these measures are completely necessary, according to the girl's mother: "We are talking about she will die, stop breathing," as a result of exposure to peanuts. But a parent of two children attending the school said this has people walking on "eggshells,” and another mom said that the washing up takes "a good 30 minutes" out of the school day. Plus: The Truth About Food Allergies

I can understand why parents can get frustrated over these measures, but would they not do the same for their own child? And Nancy Wait, who spoke for the county schools, put a kibosh on any further debate: "It is an inconvenience...but it's what's medically necessary," she said. Plus: Our blogger’s food allergy emergency

Moms to peanut-allergic kids: How do you keep your kid from exposure to peanuts when they’re at school? Have you gotten push-back from other parents?